Forbidden
by CuriousCelestial
Summary: Casper, a young witch begins her first year of Hogwarts away from her Squib twin sister, Bella. At Hogwarts, Casper finds something that draws her towards the Forbidden Forest. There she finds something that might rival the stories she heard of Harry Potter. Something bad.
1. Chapter 1 - Goodbyes

The smoke cleared, and Casper could see the scarlet train up ahead of her. She was going to Hogwarts!

At her side were her mum and dad, but unfortunately, no Bella. She wasn't able to make it through the barrier.

Casper sighed, just thinking about her sister. If only her Hogwarts letter had come!

Casper's mum saw the look on her face, and tapped her on the shoulder.

"Honey, it's not your fault she's that way. Besides, I'm sure she'll do fine at the Muggle school in town."

All of the worries and thoughts Casper had been holding inside spilled out. "But Mum, I don't want to leave her! She should be able to come to Hogwarts! Why did she have to be a SQUIB!" The s-word slipped out of her mouth.

Her mum looked over her shoulder. "You better be glad she couldn't make it through that barrier or she would be having one of her fits right now. You know we don't use that word around Bella."

Hurt and sad Casper frowned. "I know, I'm sorry. It's just, I can't think of leaving her..." As she said the thought the two girls had shared throughout the past week, a tear dripped down her cheek.

"Oh dear, I'm sorry, you can't be sad for Hogwarts. Now, it's time to get on the train; it's about to leave."

She was right. The wheels had started to turn, and the whistles were blowing.

Now was the time. Casper jumped on the train and yelled to her parents over the drone of the train. "Tell Bella I miss her already! Goodbye! I love you!"

And the train carried her away from her family and her home.

Now, to start her first year at Hogwarts. She turned away from the window, and heard a voice.

**Author's Note**

**This is my first story, please rate and review. Please tell me the mechanics of making new stories, because I'm horrible. XD The first chapter is a bit short, but the others will be longer. Give me some ideas for what will be in the forest! Thanks!**


	2. Chapter 2 - Choo Choo

The voice spooked her so much she almost dropped her bunny, Violet.

"Hello!"

A girl with dyed white hair waved at Casper. Her pure white locks had rainbow streaks on the bangs, and her hair reached her waist. The eccentric girl's freckles covered her face and arms, and she had deep blue eyes.

"Well, are you going to say anything? Or are you just a quiet one?" Her voice had a country tang to it, and she acted like nothing was wrong or different.

After being startled into silence, Casper was finally able to speak.

"Um, hello? Do you always startle people like that?"

The girl didn't skip a beat.

"Daddy always says I have that affect on people. I like to think of myself as chatty. My name is Ambrosia, but you can call me Ambrosia."

Her smile creeped out Casper. "I, um, well, I gotta go." She quickly rushed off before Ambrosia could say anything else.

After escaping that compartment, Casper rushed off to find one that might hold true friends, ones for the rest of her life. Wow, this was harder than she thought.

Casper peered into many compartments, one with a kissing couple (gross), and she only had a few left in her section.

The second to last compartment greeted her with a round of laughter, and that of girls. She peeked in, and saw four girls laughing and talking together. The perfect group of girls.

She tapped on the door, and the girls quickly quieted. The door slid open, and there stood an obvious first year. She had jet black hair, and light-brown skin. Her brown eyes swept over Casper as she examined her, from her shoes to her nervous smile.

"Hello?" The dark-skinned girl asked with a questioning tone.

Trying to sound as cool as possible, Casper answered with an answer she hoped would work.

"Sorry, the compartment I entered was occupied by Rainbow-Hair, so I was looking around for a place to sit."

The girls around her broke into laughter. A red-haired girl closest to the window spoke up.

"Yea, Ambrosia can be I bit weird. I know her from where I live."

Glad she had said the right thing, Casper sagged and sat down, as the black girl had stepped away from the door.

"You don't know how nervous I was asking you guys. I didn't want to be a freak!"

They fell into another burst of giggles.

"We aren't THAT mean. Well, Kamaria can be a bit cross sometimes, but the rest of us are ok," said a brunette in the corner.

The black girl punched her in the arm. "Willow!"

Casper mentally noted that the black girl was named Kameria, and the brunette was Willow.

"Willow, that's a pretty name." Casper smiled.

"Speaking of names, what's yours? I never heard you say it," Willow said.

"Oh, sorry, I'm Casper."

The two other girls introduced themselves as Charlotte and Lily. When Casper heard this she laughed.

"Like Lily Potter!"

"Uh, I am Lily Potter." When she saw Casper's jaw drop, she sighed. "Yes, I know, It's hard to see, but I am Lily Potter."

Casper shook her head. "No its not that, I just didn't know you were in my year. Wow, I actually know Lily Potter!"

Lily laughed. "So, do you have-"

She was interrupted by the lady with the food cart knocking on the door. "Food, anyone?"

Casper's stomach rumbled just looking at all the snacks on the cart. She bought everything and shared it with Charlotte and Willow. Kameria had gone to find her older sister, who was a prefect. Lily was pulling on her school robes.

The five girls talked for the rest of the ride, and they discussed what houses they wanted to be in. "Well," said Charlotte, "I'm bound to be in Hufflepuff, but I'm hoping for Ravenclaw."

"Oh, you won't be in Hufflepuff," Casper assured her. "I'm sure you'll be in Ravenclaw. Myself, however, well, I'm hoping for Ravenclaw or Gryfindor."

Kameria nodded. "Me too. The brave or the brainy!"

"Well, I know I'll ONLY be in Ravenclaw. My parents were both in Ravenclaw, and they won't expect anything less from me," Willow added.

Lily frowned. "I'm going to be in Gryfindor, though. We're going to be split up!"

The girls stopped talking and laughing when they heard her.

"Oh no, you're right!" Kameria said, "We won't be together."

Right before they all processed what this meant, the train lurched to a stop, and all the compartment doors opened. They had arrived at Hogwarts.

**Author's Note**

**-  
>Thank you all so much for reading this story. It's my first and I really enjoy writing it. I'm not able to tell who's reading this, so could you reply even if it's a bad review. Check out <em>BigBadWolfTardis. <em>They inspired me to write this story, and I can say they are much better at writing than me. :) Check them out! Also, I want all the girls to be in the same house, so should I make them Ravens or Lions? _PLEASE R&R_  
><strong>


	3. Chapter 3 - Bye Bye Sorting Hat

**Thank you, Maya for reviewing! It made my day, and I can't stop smiling! There will be more, but it might not be regular as I have to balance my Algebra homework with writing. THANK YOU SO MUCH!**

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><p>The whole train quieted down as they entered the train station at Hogwarts. The girls, silently, packed up their things and made their way down the train. Just like in the stories her mother told, she heard a deep voice call, "Firs' years over here! Firs' years! Firs' years over here!"<p>

It was Hagrid, the old gamekeeper. He was well beyond the age of working, but her brother always said he had refused to stop caring for his beloved school. Her mother had always described him with brown hair and a tall stature, but this Hagrid had gray hair and a slouch that must have hurt every second. He walked with a limp and gave the impression that he wasn't all there.

Following Hagrid, they reached a large lake where there were boats waiting for the first years. They all climbed into one canoe, except for small Charlotte, who was stuck with three annoying boys.

As they turned a corner in the lake, Casper saw Hogwarts for the first time. Everyone gasped as they saw the glowing windows and the majestic turrets. Casper's attention, however, was drawn towards a giant forest on the edge of the grounds. "Lily," she whispered, "doesn't that forest look cool!"

Lily didn't even turn her head as she responded, "Oh, yea, that's cool." Casper could tell her mind was on the castle, not the forest.

Looking back on it, Casper couldn't remember the rest of the boat ride. The only thing she recalled was a faint whisper in her head saying,"The forest is the refuge."

Casper came out of her dreamy-like trance when Hagrid knocked four times on the giant oak doors in front of the group. The doors almost immediately swung open, and a pretty blonde woman ushered them into a huge entrance hall.

"My name is Professor Turpin, I will be your Transfiguration teacher. Now, you are about to join the feast, but first you must be sorted. You will be in one of four houses, Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, Slytherin, or Gryffindor. They will be your family for your seven years at Hogwarts. You will relax in their common room, sleep in their dormitories, and take classes with them. Good luck."

She waved her wand in an arc, and the double doors behind her opened to reveal a giant hall. It was filled with four tables, packed to the brim with plates, goblets, and people. At the head of the hall, there was a table occupied by all the teachers. Professor Turpin led them to a stool with a hat in it, and they all bunched up in a group in the corner.

Professor Turpin went and sat down at the table, and made no other movements. However, the hat on the stool did. It's brim opened into a mouth, and it started to sing.

"Oh, I may be a bit tattered,  
>but soon I think you'll see,<br>for I'm the Hogwarts Sorting Hat,  
>and there's none more good than me.<p>

I'll chose a home for you to stay,  
>I tell you where to sleep.<br>I'll tell you who you won't like,  
>and which friends you ought to keep.<p>

I hope you've put your trust in me,  
>you can't repeat today.<br>Don't be scared to come and sit,  
>put me on and I'll say,<p>

Gryffindor, with bravery and nerve you've never seen.  
>Slytherin, with cunning like a snake.<br>Ravenclaw, with wit and thanks to learn.  
>Hufflepuff, friendliness and truth in which everyone partakes.<p>

During the Battle of Hogwarts,  
>On that very fateful day,<br>The houses joined together,  
>And kept the enemy at bay.<p>

So hear me out,  
>Whatever house I choose,<br>They all are very special,  
>With all you can never lose.<p>

We need all four houses,  
>To be a school.<br>So be nice to each other,  
>That's the golden rule.<p>

The houses need to ban together,  
>Voldy wasn't the only threat.<br>So we all need to help each other,  
>If a dangerous path is set.<p>

So it's time to know,  
>In what house will you be?<br>Call the names, I'm ready!  
>AND NOW LET'S SEE!"<p>

Casper gulped. It wasn't as bad as she expected, but she wished the hat didn't have to read her mind. There were a few a things in there she wished to keep hidden.

Professor Turpin pulled out a scroll from her robes, and read a name.

"Arafic, Daniel!" A boy with blonde hair went and sat on the stool. The hat took only a few seconds to decide:

SLYTHERIN!

"Bollinger, Casper!"

Oh, why did she have to be second! If only she had a name like Zanzar. Feeling like her legs were made of sand, Casper slowly wobbled towards the stool. As slowly as she could, she slipped the hat onto her head. As soon as she did, she heard a voice speaking.

"Well, hello Casper. Oh, you've had some cowboys in here. Oh, you don't want Slytherin or Hufflepuff, that's a surprise. Well you have lots-"

The voice cut off with a little tremble.

"Hello?" Casper thought, "Sorting Hat? What happened?"

The voice came back, thankfully, but it was at a gravelly whisper.

"Casper. You have to trust me. Do. Not. Go. Into. The. Forest. Please, it's for the entire school's sake."

Casper was stunned. "Sorting Hat, I thought you were supposed to sort me, not give me advice!"

"This is more than advice. This is life or death. Do what I say. It's coming. Ple-"

The voice cut off again, but this time Casper had a feeling it wasn't coming back.

Casper slowly pulled the hat off her head, and turned to Professor Turpin. Her face was a mixture of curiosity and impatience.

"Professor, the Sorting Hat. It's gone."

The hall went dead quiet, and every astonished face was staring at Casper.

The voice from the on the boats came back. "The forest is the refuge. The forest is the refuge! The FOREST is the refuge! THE FOREST IS THE REFUGE! THE FOREST IS THE REFUGE!" The voice was screaming in her head.

The room started to sway, and the candle light turned into snakes. Everyone dissolved into acid, and the snakes lunged. She fell, and hit her head on the floor.

The forest is the refuge.

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><p><strong>I know it's a bit dramatic already, but I think it's a good place for it. I need an idea for who the headmaster should be, I have no idea who it should be! I haven't written in a VERY long time, but I had the worst writers block I've ever had. I decided to just write, even though I had no idea what to do, and this cool plot came out from the depths in my brain. Just to be clear, the sorting hat voice is different than the refuge voice. I just wanted to make that clear, just in case there was any confusion.<span><em> Please R&amp;R<em>** **I like to know someone is there! :)**


	4. Chapter 4 - Shadows and Amnesia

**I'm writing this the same day as I finished Chapter 3, so I probably won't use any of your suggestions. I don't know if I will finish it today, so, who knows. :)**

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><p>It was pitch black, but Casper could tell it was day. There was just something blocking her view. She looked to what she thought was up, and saw the faint light of the sun. It was blocked by trees, each individual leaf sucking up the warmth and the brightness. There was only one place that she could be be.<p>

The forest.

An old memory fluttered through her mind. A gravelly whisper, saying, "You have to trust me." However much she struggled, Casper couldn't remember who said it. Or what.

Another thought occurred to Casper. What if the forest wasn't only blocking the light, but also her memories? She couldn't recall how she got here, or where she was before this. Who was she with? What forest was she even in?

Casper's heart started to beat so violently that she started to think that she could hear it. Dun-dun. Dun-dun. Dun-dun.

The thumping was gradually growing louder, until Casper realized that it wasn't her heart beat, it was something coming. Something big. Something loud. Something fast. Casper turned and ran to the nearest tree. As soon as she started to climb, the tree oozed something that burned her skin. Unable to climb the trees, Casper had no choice but to run.

As she ran farther and farther, the trees started to thin, and more light shone through. A face flashed through Casper's mind. Somehow, she knew it was her sister, Belle. No, Beatrice. No, Bella. Bella. Casper ran harder and faster, but the beast was catching up. Finally, Casper saw the edge of the forest. In front of it was a grand castle, full of rooms and towers, but it looked cold and empty.

A voice behind her whispered, "The forest is the refuge."

Casper reached the last tree, with the monster right behind her. At the last second, Casper lunged for safety. She landed on soft grass, under a blue sky. She was safe. The beast had disappeared. Casper got up, and turned to walk towards the castle.

Casper almost died of fright when she saw what was in between her and the castle. A dark shadow, blocking out the sun. Something in Casper's mind told her the thing shouldn't have been able to leave the forest.

"Wha-"

The shade picked her up by the throat with a tendril of smoke, and squeezed.

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><p>Casper almost shot out of her bed.<p>

A scream so loud and piercing she didn't think was possible echoed in her head. Casper didn't realize until later that it was her.

A stout woman with a very soft face came out of a little room at the end of the room. Her hand was fluttering around her heart.

"My dear, you scared me! How are you feeling?"

Casper was in a room she didn't recognize, like everything else. There were no windows in the room, so she wasn't able to see where she was.

"Um, who are you? And where am I?"

The stout woman bustled around the room, fixing falling curtains, pouring medicine to some of the other patients in the room. They all were looking at Casper, but every time she made eye contact with them, they would look very interested in the flowers by their bed.

Finally, the lady got to Casper, and poured her a smoking hot pink potion.

"You're in the hospital wing, sweetie. What, do you think we would just let you lay on the floor after you pass out?" She gave me a smile. "I'm Madam Douce."

Casper was still confused. "Ma'am, the hospital wing of what?"

Madam Douce barely skipped a beat. "Hogwarts of course! Where else would you be?"

Casper frowned. The name Hogwarts was foreign to Casper. It sounded like a refuge for pigs, not a hospital. The only way to figure out where she was, was to to keep asking.

"Um, what is Hogwarts?"

Madame Douce had had her back to Casper, mixing the potion, but at the sound of Casper's questions, she spun around quickly. Her face went white, and her expression was all but smiling.

The three other kids in the room with her had stopped pretending to not be looking at her. They all were staring at her with their mouths wide open. The room was dead silent.

Madame Douce quickly set the potion down, and almost ran to her personal room. There was a small flash of silver light, and a murmur from Madame Douce. Casper saw a silver, floating turtle paddle slowly out of the small room, and then with another spell from Madame Douce, it sped out of the room. It it's trail, it left light gray mist. Reminding Casper of the shadow her vision-dream, (whatever it was) she shuddered.

Almost immediately, a woman with a pointed wizard's hat and long purple robes walked into the supposed "hospital wing." Madam Douce popped her head out of her office and pointed to Casper.

The woman turned towards Casper, and Casper saw her face for the first time.

She had a few gray hairs, mixed in a sea of long, curly, and blonde hair. Her face was kind, with smile lines, and she had blue eyes. As she turned her gaze towards Casper, however, she frowned and her eyes lost their twinkle.

She walked over to Casper's bed, and sat down in a chair that definitely wasn't there a minute ago.

"Casper, do you know who I am?" Her voice was sweet and pretty, but it had an air of power. This was someone Casper did not want to cross.

She probed her mind to think of anything, but all she could think of was dark leaves choking her memories. Just thinking about it made her dizzy, and she swayed slightly.

"No, I'm sorry. Can I go outside?"

Casper's request seemed to stump the mystery woman. "Why would you want to do that Casper?"

"I want to see the forest."

The words seemed to not come from her own mouth, but from something else. Something tugged at the dark part of her mind, but she couldn't recall what it was.

"Victoria, do you think that Casper could go outside, I think it might help her remember something."

The words were directed toward Madame Douce. Looking slightly cross about it, she nodded, and the mystery woman helped get Casper out of bed.

"Casper, if you feel weak, just tell me, okay?"

Being careful not to say yes, Casper blurted out the first thing that came to mind.

"What's your name ma'am?"

The woman smiled. "Finally, a sensible question! To you, I'm known as Professor Clearwater. I'm the headmaster at Hogwarts."

Thinking on that, the Professor led Casper down a flight of moving staircases, out to a pair of giant oak doors, and pushed them opened.

The fresh air cleared Casper's mind, and she breathed deeply. She looked at the trees off in the distance, and saw a shadow on the edge.

"Professor, can you see that?"

Before she could respond, Casper sprinted towards the forest while Professor Clearwater shouted at her to come back. A slowing spell hit her from the headmaster's wand, but it was too late. Casper reached out her finger, and touched the monster.

And then she remembered.

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><p><strong>Very action-packed this chapter, but I like it! By the way, MERRY CHRISTMAS! :) It's 10:30 at night on Christmas Eve right now, so I'm pretty hyper! If you don't celebrate Christmas, Merry _, and you are missing out! I know it's kinda pointless to right these author's notes because there probably isn't anybody reading my stories... I really want some one to comment (other than a guest) so please R&amp;R! It would be the best Christmas present EEEEEEVVVVVVVEEEEEERRRRRR if someone just said hi. PLEASE! I want to know some one is there!<strong>

**I prob won't write tomorrow, so don't expect anything. Sorry, I'll be opening presents. :)**

**-Curious **


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